TA's Going Out of Business?

[sail7seas]

Any of you notice TA's in your communities shutting their doors?

 

We have hardly any brick and mortars left.

 

The one I used to use closed...... I saw it coming about 9 months to a year out and stopped working with them, thankfully. Would have been a real nuisance with pending bookings.

 

Wondering if others are seeing the brick and mortars disappearing?

[DMorris]

Alot have closed around me too... but they also don't stay open past 5pm either and aren't open on weekends... I think that is why the ones by me are not as successful as they could have been.

[gatour]

So far I haven't seen any close. There are four that I see on a regular basis and all four specialize in cruises. Two are what I would consider pure brick and mortar TA and two are what I consider hybirds, i.e. they do a lot of bookings because of their Internet presence but they happen to be located in my city, and I can actually visit their offices to book a cruise.

 

My guess is that at least one of the four will close if this economy keeps up, probably one of the pure brick and mortars.

[hammybee]

No B&M's left in my local area.

[Krazy Kruizers]

The majority of the smaller Travel Companies in our area closed within a year of 9/11.

Not many left here.

Bit companies like AAA won't be closing -- in our area they also do Photo ID's for drivers licenses.

[Suitegurl]

So far no shut doors, but the hours are significantly cut back.

[innlady1]

We have one very busy travel agency here (a woman in my investment club owns it). She seems to do very well...islanders are very loyal to her.

[slabeaume]

Tried to go to our local AAA TA yesterday only to find it was gone. Not sure when it closed up.

[anniep]

The current economic woes aside, the travel business has been moving away from generalist brick and mortar agencies and towards specialist home-based agents for some time now. It's tough to be all things to all people, and many consumers are realizing that it's better to work with a specialist who knows a lot about the particular type of travel that they are interested in (cruises, safaris, honeymoons, whatever) These home-based specialists don't have to support the overhead of a storefront agency, and they have much more flexible and accommodating hours that are built around their clients' convenience.

[shonuf]

My B&M agent closed his doors a few months ago due to a slowdown in business. He operates out of his house now and other than enjoying visiting the store to pick up our documents, I guess it works fine for me and saves him a bundle.

[sail7seas]

My B&M agent closed his doors a few months ago due to a slowdown in business. He operates out of his house now and other than enjoying visiting the store to pick up our documents, I guess it works fine for me and saves him a bundle.

 

 

He is/was a one person business?

[Ephraim]

In Quebec, all travel agents must collect an indemnity fee. In the case of the agency going out of business, we are covered by the indemnity fund, backed by the provincial government.

 

In Ontario, all TICO registered agencies are covered. Both Expedia.ca and Travelocity.ca are registered with TICO.

 

I'm not sure of other provinces, though

[haligonian37]

I have booked all of my cruises through a local CAA office and on one of my last trips in, my TA commented that they are busier now than ever before.

[earl_m]

Maybe it might be safer to book directly with the cruiseline

[JLC@SD]

Any of you notice TA's in your communities shutting their doors?

 

We have hardly any brick and mortars left.

 

The one I used to use closed...... I saw it coming about 9 months to a year out and stopped working with them, thankfully. Would have been a real nuisance with pending bookings.

 

Wondering if others are seeing the brick and mortars disappearing?

 

....yep.....along with the real estate offices and banks.....:eek:

[heavenly]

Maybe it might be safer to book directly with the cruiseline

 

As long as you pay with a credit card you are safe whatever direction you choose.

[caribbeanboy]

I think it's not only the economy but also a lot of people book now directly thru internet, and I'm not only talking about cruises but especially airline tickets & hotels.

[Krazy Kruizers]

Tried to go to our local AAA TA yesterday only to find it was gone. Not sure when it closed up.

 

 

That is something -- maybe there too many too close together.

[Krazy Kruizers]

I think it's not only the economy but also a lot of people book now directly thru internet, and I'm not only talking about cruises but especially airline tickets & hotels.

 

I won't use an online cruise agency, but we do book our airflights and hotels online directly through their sites.

[gelo7]

I haven't used a brick and mortar TA in about 10 years, but I wanted to find a HAL cruise brochure 2 weeks ago and I couldn't find a brick and mortar TA within 20 miles of us.

[babyher]

Our AAA TA does a pretty good business around here. Outside of that I can't think of a B&A one close by.

 

Over the summer I wanted a few brochures myself and went straight to AAA. They had everything :)

[98Charlie]

As long as you pay with a credit card you are safe whatever direction you choose.

Credit cards work well for the protection. But, make sure that the charges are going directly to the cruise line for your payments.

 

Every once in a while a horror story pops up on the boards about an agency taking the payments directly and then having a problem paying the cruise line.

 

Charlie

[98Charlie]

One general thought on the original question.

 

Over the course of the past 10-15 years many people are no longer going anywhere for services. Some personal examples:

• We used to shop at a local mall for clothing, household items, etc. I can't remember the last time we went. Most of the clothes that I wear for work come via the internet. Slacks, shirts, ties, even shoes (and I need special slip proof shoes). My tuxedo for cruising came from the internet also.
  
• We used to be at the bank at least once a week. Now there is direct deposit, internet bill payment, etc. If I would need a loan for anything there is an open line of credit that I can access via the internet also. So the bank is maybe a once a month visit now.
  
• The first time I took a flight I actually had to buy the ticket at the airport.:eek: Now I can compare and buy in my bathrobe.
  

So, it's not surprising that TA's would be closing unless they have strong relations with their clients. And since people move away or die, they need clients that will refer others and convince new travellers that it's worth getting out of your "jammies" to go to the office and talk to them personally.

 

The B&M offices that have limited hours and/or specialize in a limited product like cruises only are IMHO headed for extinction.

 

Charlie

[CruisinManiac]

Credit cards work well for the protection. But, make sure that the charges are going directly to the cruise line for your payments.

 

Every once in a while a horror story pops up on the boards about an agency taking the payments directly and then having a problem paying the cruise line.Charlie

 

 

Just had this happen in our town. A local TA was arrested for embezzling customers money.

[iancal]

I think the internet and peoples awareness has resulted in many closures. We just got back from a month in Europe. We did the research. It is absolutely incredible. Many small B&B's in places far from well know cities have web sites, pictures, etc. Internet has made the world a much smaller place. Even when we use a TA, it is always on line or by phone.